On-location Makeup Artist and Bridal Hairstylist

Tag: tricia clarke bridal

I started something new this year. Instead of just responding to emailed bridal inquiries, I tried to schedule quick phone calls with all potential brides. I like the personal aspect of a phone call in a world in which we spend so. much. time behind screens. I had toyed with the idea of a quick get-to-know-you chat, and when I had lunch last January with one of my favorite fellow artists, Joanna Bastermajian, she mentioned that was one of the first things she does with potential brides. I have learned that Joanna is a thoughtful and all-around wise woman, and I respect her business acumen as well as her artistic talent, so I decided to go for it. When I think about that day back in January, there are a number of things that were discussed and mulled over that actually really set the tone for this year (but that’s a separate blog post).

This is all to say, that when I got an email from a potential bride named Jessica, I asked if we could have a quick chat. She agreed, and 2 minutes into our call I had decided she sounded kick-ass and I was hoping she’d decide to move forward with booking. AND it turns out that she had gotten my name from Joanna! (It’s a small world, friends. I love my band of makeup artists that work together and spread the love–more on them in another blog post, too!)

But back to Jessica. As we talked, she shared with me more about the day she and her fiance had been dreaming up. A small, intimate party on the rooftop of one of their favorite restaurant’s in Chicago’s West Loop, Little Goat. Their closest friends, lots of beer and great music. And the bride would be prepping that morning in the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel because–get this—she was on the architectural team that oversaw it’s re-design. And all of this awesomeness photographed by Jennifer Shaffer.

Did I say K-I-C-K-A-S-S?!?

You can imagine my delight when Jessica decided to book me for hair and makeup for her wedding day!

I met Jessica, along with her mom and sister, on the day of her trial. At that point, she was planning to wear a short, deep-blush-colored dress that she had found and loved, and that was NOT a wedding dress. It fit perfectly with her non-traditional approach. We did her hair and makeup preview, and left undecided in terms of a lip shade, because she really wanted to pinpoint one that would look perfect with the color of her dress. BUT THEN….

She just happened to pop into BHLDN…and well, you can guess what happened! She found an amazing dress with a CAPELET and so on wedding day, we just had to go with a gorgeous warm red lip to play up her beautiful coloring. I mean, seriously!

Jessica’s directions to me were to make her look “like myself, elevated”. Perfect! With skin like that, and such a lovely contrast with dark brows and hair, my task was easy. I love to give my brides glowing skin (meaning strategic coverage that isn’t caky–with just the right amount of highlight!) and a balanced eye and lip look.

Jessica had also emailed me just before her trial that she’d chopped off her hair, and asked me if that was a problem. I assured her, as I do all my brides, that the most important thing is that YOU like the way YOU LOOK. I will work with you to make you look your best, but you are the judge of what makes you feel beautiful and look amazing! We went with sleek bouncy curls that played up her hair’s natural shine and her jeweled pins added the perfect touch and contrast in her dark hair.

I also got to do hair and makeup for her mom, sister, and soon-to-be Mother-in-law. What a fun, relaxing morning we had! When Jessica sent me her pictures from that day, I had to ask for some of the detail shots, because she and Brandon really incorporated their personalities into every aspect.

Donuts on the Paperless Post invite! (Jessica’s dad handed out pink donuts instead of cigars when his daughters were born—are you kidding me?!) Heart eyes…

Custom (and I mean Jessica designed this bag!) welcome packages for all the guests…they love Bloody Mary’s and Brandon works for Miller–is this so Chicago or WHAT?

Then, her friend gave her this and we all died. DIED.

She made it with the help of Unearthed Paper Co. via Etsy. I want one!

Have I digressed from talking about hair and makeup? Can you blame me? Back on topic…

Because of Jessica’s role in the re-design of the hotel, she and Brandon were able to take some photos inside some of the sexy spaces of the Chicago Athletic Association, a privilege usually reserved for those tying the knot on-location. These lucky two got to have their fun photo shoot and then go party at Little Goat!

I’m gonna say it again, K-I-C-K-A-S-S!

What a great group. Look at those proud parents!

I absolutely love that Jessica invited Brandon’s mom to hang out that morning and have her hair and makeup done. As the mom of two boys she had never done anything like it, and told me when she sat in my chair, she’d never had her makeup done! New favorite!

I LOVE SISTERS.

And her sister wound up wearing the dress Jessica had planned to wear. PERFECT with a rose lip and romantic hair ( I wish you could see the back of this updo! You can on my Instagram 😉

Also, I LOVE MOMS.

I seriously have the best chats with the mothers on wedding day. Job perk, for sure! Mom’s just needed a bit of volume and softness for an elegant finish. I LOVE doing makeup on moms because it lets me focus on brows, which many moms share with me have faded. Mothers of the brides—I got you!

I loved working with Jessica and her family to come up with hair and makeup looks that highlighted their best features. And of course, one of my favorite things about this job is getting photos back to see how everything came together!

Jessica sent me this shot because the art matched her lipstick, and it is AMAZING.

And it even looks awesome in black and white. I love when I get photos like this so I can demonstrate what to me is a crucial aspect of good wedding makeup. Wedding makeup MUST look good in color AND in black and white! No debate!

Jessica, you were a glowing bride on your wedding day, and a joy to work with in the months leading up to your wedding. Thank you for choosing me to be a part of such a special day. #leofiorellafest was truly a celebration of the love you and Brandon share! I wish you all the best for the future, and many more joyous times full of good friends, great music, delicious food and beer! Cheers!

I shared in my last post about one of my favorite weddings so far this year. {K}’s party in June was 1920’s themed and each of her bridesmaids wore a different flapper-style dress, along with a custom made headpiece. They all looked amazing, and even better, this group of women knew how to have fun! The morning spent doing their makeup was definitely a highlight of my summer. I truly love what I do, but when I get to do it for really lovely people, I really appreciate it!

The bride and groom rented a sweet vintage car and EVERYONE dressed up for this wedding! Can you even imagine?

{K} also had a friend on hand during the prep portion of the day to take some getting ready shots. I especially enjoyed doing makeup on {K}’s niece, as she is the same age I was when I started to realize I seriously loved makeup, and I just have a heart for adolescent girls. She was delightful.

Side note: When did my hair get so long? Sheesh! And if you’ve noticed, I pretty much wear the same shirts when I am working, I wear this pink one from Express all the time, it’s comfy, doesn’t wrinkle, and I can move in it! For a busy mom, this is a good thing, I need easy to take care of clothes!

My other favorite part of the day was doing makeup for {K}’s mom. I truly love my bride’s moms. They are harder to win over, but once you have established trust, they are the sweetest. They’ve spent years taking care of other people, and rarely get to pamper themselves. This mother in particular was a dear. She waited to go until the very end, to make sure everyone else was taken care of, and then held her granddaughter on her lap the whole time! They were both the sweetest.

Love this shot of mother and daughter, glammed up and looking fabulous!

This really was a fun family, here is the bride with her sister, love that the sister wanted to do smoky eyes. And I love the ringlets on both of them! I wish I could take credit for these hairstyles but it was a friend of the brides who worked that curling iron all morning!

I will leave you with a color shot of the lovely bride. Thanks {K} for hiring me, your wedding was a highlight of my summer!

A special thank you to Kristin Kukla of Kukla Photography for these beautiful images!

Early in the summer, I got an email from a bride whose makeup artist had cancelled at the last minute. (I can’t even. What stress!) She’d been referred to me by a fellow makeup artist and wanted to know if I was free for a Saturday wedding. Normally in June, with only 3 weeks notice, no way! However, as I am constantly striving to balance my personal and professional life, I committed in 2014 to work one wedding per weekend, and for that weekend I had booked a Friday wedding. Well, rules are made to be broken, right? And there was no way I could leave a bride in need!

We made the arrangements, but realized with her real-life responsibilities and the limited time, there was just no way to do a makeup trial. I ALWAYS require a trial for my brides, so I was super nervous to forego one in this case, especially because I didn’t know the bride! My worries increased as I drove to her parent’s house that morning, because I realized she’d said the wedding was in a town that is known for its summer-long Renaissance Faire! Would I be asked to do Ren Fair makeup? What would that even mean? She had sent a picture of makeup she liked, and it didn’t scream corsets and 14th century, but one never knows. Determined I would satisfy her no matter what, I thanked my lucky stars I had a smart phone, and figured Google would help me if I had to quickly research Elizabethan makeup! Huzzah!

My worries were unfounded when I was greeted at the door by a beautiful woman with clear skin and strawberry blonde hair. As we chatted while her hair stylist worked and I set up my kit, I tactfully inquired as to what style she was hoping for, and she laughed when I confessed my Ren Fair concerns. “It’s a time period wedding but we’re not going that far back,” she laughed. “It’s 1920’s!”

WHEW! And, how FUN! This was by far, one of my favorite weddings to work on this summer. Every single woman that sat in my chair was so fun, we had a blast all morning. They each chose their own flapper style dress, and a friend’s mom made everyone fantastic headpieces.

The bride herself opted for a look that was all about the eyes. We used a strip lash and some dramatic shadows to really let her gorgeous green-blue eyes stand out. Here are some shots of the process so you can see the transformation!

About halfway there, she still needs lashes, lips and some finishing blush and bronzer.

WOW! (If I do say so myself!) Look at those lashes and that GLOW! I loved how her ringlets really pulled the whole look together.

This black and white shot is my favorite because she really could be a glamorous moll from the 1920’s, don’t you think?

And here is the happy couple! Cheers you two! Here’s to a lifetime of laughs and love, I think you are off to a great start!

Thanks to Kristin Kukla of Kukla Photography for the beautiful images! My next post will feature some of K’s fabulous family and friends. They were so fun, I had to do a separate post. Check back soon!

It’s kinda funny, as a bridal makeup artist, I am invited into people’s homes and welcomed to touch their faces, usually mere moments after we meet for the first time! It’s exciting but also daunting, because we’re each trying to get a feel for one another. I need the bride to be honest about what she wants to look like on her wedding day, and I am hoping I interpret that correctly! Sometimes I also have to help frame someone’s expectations, and explain what will and won’t work for them. Often at a bridal trial I can suggest that someone start using eye cream, or begin seeing a professional esthetician for brow grooming. These seem like little things, but when you are going to spend a day being photographed they make a big difference.

In Giles’ case, her bridal trial was scheduled for the night of her bachelorette party, which turned out to be really fun, as she included her bridesmaids in the action, and everyone got to get dolled up together. It also gave Giles a chance to wear her makeup all night, and see what she loved AND what she wanted to change for her wedding day look. I really value this chance to get feedback from my brides, because I want them to feel phenomenal when they walk down the aisle. I can do what I think is a flawless makeup application, but if the final look doesn’t match the bridal vision they’ve been dreaming about, they won’t feel truly confident and stunning.

After her trial, Giles emailed me and requested we tone down her blush, because she tends to flush naturally. And, although she found the strip lashes I applied to be comfortable (which is crucial!) she wanted a more subtle look. I was able to take these requests and adjust my application so that she felt like the best version of herself on her wedding day. That’s always my goal: to make my brides not only feel beautiful, but like the most beautiful version of their authentic self. Then they can really shine!

Here’s Giles on her wedding day!

For those of you who like product details, I used Smashbox Photo Finish Primer in Light, MAC PRO Longwear Concealer and Kett Airbrush Foundation, applied with my Kett Jet.

I applied just a touch of a light MAC Cream blush prior to airbrushing her foundation, so just a very soft coral would appear as a gentle flush. I contoured her using Benefit Hoola, applied with a very light hand. I used MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Medium Plus to give her a bit more dimension on her cheeks without veering in pink or red territory.

I primed her eyelids with TooFaced Shadow Insurance in Lemon Drop, and used various MAC shadows on her eyes, Eye liner is Bobbi Brown gel liner in Black, and I used Cover Girl Lashblast mascara in Very Black, then applied Monda Studio Lashes #213 using Duo Glue.

Giles’ lips are lined in MAC Subculture, and topped with Creme Cup. Here are some of her posed and candid pics from the rest of her day! Look at those lashes!

These two clearly have a blast with each other!

And these two bridesmaids, so fun! I loved coming up with fun eye looks to play off their purple dresses!

Gorgeous pictures from this summer’s weddings keep rolling in! Seeing my beautiful brides in their professional pictures is seriously one of my favorite things about being a makeup artist. For Giles’ wedding, I actually got a bonus. Her photographer, the fantastic Erin Hoyt, actually took pictures of me in action, and best of all, I don’t look gross in them! Sometimes by the end of a gig, depending on how big it is, how hot the room was, and how long I was up with my teething baby the night before, I can look really ROUGH! I actually look ok in these! (We’re always our own worst critic so of course I start analyzing what I could have done differently…but enough! We should all quit obsessing sometimes.)

But enough about me! Giles’ wedding was really fun. She scheduled her trial for the night of her bachelorette party, so I got to meet her bridesmaids too! I did their makeup as well, so that everyone would be looking amazing for their night out in Chicago. The great thing about hiring your wedding makeup artist for your trial is that everyone gets to know each other a bit, and things on your wedding day go that much more smoothly. I even wrote a whole article about it for Chicago Style Weddings, which you can read here.

Shameless plug aside, in the case of Giles and her bridesmaids, it worked really well to have had trials for everyone. I walked in on wedding day feeling like we were already all friends, and we had a blast. And now, I will stop talking and show you some pictures!

If you look closely in this one, you can see the makeup spraying out of my airbrush!

Talk about natural light! It was a pleasure getting to work in that room!

I have to concentrate really hard on eye liner. Even pros have to work hard to get even lines! I am almost sticking my tongue out here!

The big reveal. I am always nervous! Love to see the smile on her face.

Now it all starts to come together as her mom helps her into her amazing dress. Loved the sheer detail and applique. Giles picked the perfect dress for her style and figure and looked stunning. And can I just say, I love that wine lip on her mom!

And here is the beautiful bride!

We opted for very, very soft neutral blush as Giles said she flushes naturally and didn’t want to look too pink. We also used more subtle lashes for her wedding than we did for her bachelorette party. She really wanted the focus on her eyes, without them looking overdone. How did we do?

I hope you liked this sneak peek into what it’s like behind the scenes! Come back on Friday for this lovely brides posed pictures with her handsome groom.

I can’t believe it’s already August 3rd–this summer has flown by. In July, I celebrated one year of Tricia Clarke Makeup! As I look back on my first full year as a freelance makeup artist, I am so grateful for all of the brides and brides-to-be who have chosen me to make them feel beautiful for their special days.

As my busy summer draws to a close, I am finally able to start posting some of the gorgeous pics that are beginning to flood my inbox! It is always exciting when I see an email from a bride who has sent me her professional pics.Depending on the day and on the bride, sometimes my job is done and I leave before her dress is even on, so I just ADORE seeing the pics of my brides completely dressed in their stunning gowns, with jewelry, head pieces and colorful flowers. So get ready, because over the next few weeks I will be sharing some of my favorite brides from wedding season 2014!

First up is sweet Melissa. Oh Melissa, what a dear heart. This girl is special to me. I have known Melissa since she was about 5 years old, and she joined the Swedish Children’s group my family was in, I was even the folk dance instructor for a few years while I was in high school! ( I have never hid my nerd status and I am not about to start, so there!) While our parents lived in the same town, the fact that I was about 10 years older than Melissa meant that once I graduated from the group, I didn’t see Melissa for about 2 decades, but would hear through the grapevine that she was doing well. Imagine my delight when she contacted me last year and asked me to do her wedding makeup. It was so fun to see her again, and to realize that the sweet little girl I knew had grown into a lovely young woman, so composed and professional, but still genuine and charming and funny.

When we met for her trial, Melissa had already told me that she wears VERY minimal makeup on a daily basis, but understood that she wanted to look great for her wedding and to photograph beautifully. I kept my application to a minimum, and used a light touch in eyeshadow, and did only minimal contouring and foundation, as she really wanted her freckles to remain visible. Melissa took my advice and had her trial on the day of her wedding shower so that she could get feedback from her family and friends . Here is a picture of her finished trial look:

While overall she told me she felt very pretty, she shared with me she still felt like the makeup was too much. THIS is why I insist on trials with my brides. It is so important to me that they not only feel beautiful on their wedding day, but also LIKE THEMSELVES! Because we did a trial, I knew what I had to adjust on the day of the wedding, and I was able to give Melissa exactly what she wanted. Here is a picture of Melissa’s final look on wedding day!

To keep the look as natural as possible, I opted to use individual lash clusters, instead of strip lashes. These really blend with her natural lashes and just give her a bit more volume so that her eyes pop but are not too dramatic.

I also used a dark brown gel eye liner (Bobbi Brown, my fave!) instead of black. Melissa had a daytime, outdoor ceremony and we really wanted to keep the look soft and effortlessly lovely.

Using Kett airbrush foundation sparingly, I was able to really perfect Melissa’s already glowing skin so that it would look great in HD photography, but also not look “made-up”. Ooh, look, action shot!

As you can see, Melissa has great skin and beautiful rosy tone to her lips. It was really easy to make her look great, I just played up her eyes using soft browns with a bit of gold in the center of the lid to make her blue eyes pop. I also softly defined her brows using my Anastasia of Beverly Hills Pro Palette, which I splurged on this year and have loved SO MUCH! I don’t even know how I did brows before!

It was also a treat to get to see Melissa’s mom again after so many years. I love doing mother of the bride makeup, because often times, I really have to win their trust, but once I do, we have a blast. Like Melissa, her mom doesn’t wear a lot of makeup, and wasn’t even sure she wanted me to apply any! I use Benefit’s Porefessional to really smooth out her skin, applied mascara and defined her brows, and did a subtle pink lip–and VOILA! She still looked like herself, but felt special, as she should on such a special day! When Melissa emailed me and told her that her mom really liked the way she looked that day, I smiled for a whole hour. If I can make women feel better about themselves, my work is done!

Melissa, thank you for letting me be a part of your wedding day. You are beautiful inside and out. It was a privilege to be allowed to make you feel gorgeous and can I just say, I am THRILLED to have pictures of your beautiful face in my portfolio! I mean, just look at this smile!

I wish you and your husband a lifetime of happiness! And I leave you, dear readers, with one of Melissa’s favorites from her wedding day. Photo credit goes to Dave Jilek of George Street Photography. I love having these fantastic images–he really captured their joy at becoming husband and wife! Cheers, Melissa and Nate! xoxo, Tricia